During my search on cardiovascular health and the new technology that is being put forth in order to decrease the dramatic occurrence of heart disease, I came across an extremely unique study currently being conducted by the University of California San Francisco (UCSF). The principal investigators of the study include Dr. Jeffrey E.Olgin, Professor of Medicine and Chief of Cardiology at UCSF; Dr. Mark J. Pletcher, Associate Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics and Medicine at UCSF; and Dr. Gregory M. Marcus, Associate Professor of Medicine and Director of Clinical Research for Cardiology at UCSF. According to the University a heart attack happens every 34 seconds here in the United States and although medical advancements in preventing poor cardiovascular health are arising, there is still tons of contributing factors about the heart that we still do not know (Olgin, Pletcher & Marcus, 2014). This study known as the Health eHeart study is different from others in that it relies on what they call BIG data. In other words this study plans on gathering more data about the cardiovascular system and its association with health from more people than any previous research has ever done before. How you might ask? TECHNOLOGY!
The original recruitment for the Health eHeart study is done through the website health-eheartstudy.org, which is supported by both UCSF and the American Heart Association. The study calls for all kinds of participants, those completely healthy, those who have heart disease, and even those that have heart disease that science is unable to treat, as long as they are over the age of 18 (Olgin, Pletcher & Marcus, 2014). Once members join and are participants of the study, they are then able to invite others to join the study through social media (Facebook or Twitter, etc). According to the University, “We’ve made it easy to ask friends and family to join the effort and, if you want, eventually you will be able to post information about the study and let people know how you’re helping to cure heart disease” (Olgin, Pletcher & Marcus, 2014).
In order to gather relevant data from the population within the Health eHeart study multiple gadgets, smartphones and other innovations of the latest technology will be utilized. The first being electronic study visits, in which all data is collected over a secure website allowing data collection to be easier and less time consuming for the participants. Another interesting facet of data collection is the utilization of mobile apps that allow you take surveys, achieve real time measurements, track various behaviors and send in medical information (Olgin, Pletcher & Marcus, 2014). Some participants will even be given sensors to wear in order to monitor the health of their hearts. These sensors will then link up to their smartphones and take blood pressures, heart rate, ECG monitoring, sleep patterns, activities, and heart arrhythmias (Olgin, Pletcher & Marcus, 2014).
In addition to the goal of understanding the causes of heart disease and finding new ways of its prevention, the study also has set out to develop new and more accurate ways of predicting heart disease through measurements, genetics, behavior patterns and family and medical history (Olgin, Pletcher & Marcus, 2014). Additionally, the Health eHeart study has also established the goal of creating personalized tools for patients to use when the development of heart disease is already established (Olgin, Pletcher & Marcus, 2014). Listed below are seven main aspects of heart disease taken from the Health eHeart study that will be further evaluated over its course.
1. Can heart disease be predicted based on measurements, behavior patterns, and family and medical history? Can we look at everyday habits in real time to determine how they affect our cardiovascular health (Olgin, Pletcher & Marcus, 2014)?
2. Can we use technology to develop ways to improve cardiovascular health and rigorously test them to determine their effects on health? Or can we use technology to help people live a more heart-health lifestyle (Olgin, Pletcher & Marcus, 2014)?
3. Can we determine what causes episodes of atrial fibrillation? How do behaviors, diet, other diseases and genes interact to cause it (Olgin, Pletcher & Marcus, 2014)?
4. Can we use mobile technology and sensors to keep people with heart failure out of the hospital (Olgin, Pletcher & Marcus, 2014)?
5. Does being more connected with people improve heart health (Olgin, Pletcher & Marcus, 2014)?
6. Can we predict when heart disease, such as heart failure, coronary disease, or hypertension, will get worse before someone needs hospitalization (and even before the patient knows something is wrong)? Credit card companies use Big Data to alert you when your card has been stolen before you even realize it’s gone; Netflix can recommend movies you’ve never heard of before. Can’t we do something similar for heart disease (Olgin, Pletcher & Marcus, 2014)?
7. Are people with different kinds of genes more vulnerable to particular heart disease risks (Olgin, Pletcher & Marcus, 2014)?
In conclusion to the findings on the Health eHeart study being conducted through UCSF, the success of the study ultimately depends on the participants sticking with the study for many years in order to see who out of those involved become diagnosed with heart disease and who does not. Based on these results and the data collected on the comparing individuals health care professionals can better understand what affects our hearts when compared to others. As their motto states “it only take a few minutes to make a big difference” (Olgin, Pletcher & Marcus, 2014). Visit https://www.health-eheartstudy.org/ to learn more!
Reference
Olgin, J., Pletcher, M., & Marcus, G. (2014). Join the study to end heart disease. Retrieved February 7, 2015, from https://www.health-eheartstudy.org/
